Beaumont: I still consider myself a Cardinal

The news of Bobby Petrino's decision to leave the University of Louisville to become the new head coach for the NFL's Atlanta Falcons came as a surprise to everyone.

"It was a little bit of a shock when I saw that he was leaving," said Louisville Male's Doug Beaumont, who verbally committed to the Cardinals following their win against Miami in September. "I can respect him for going though...for going out to try to live his dream."

Part of Beaumont's dream was to play under Petrino at U of L, but the recent events hasn't changed the Scout.com four-star prospect's mind in where he wants to play.

"I still consider myself a Cardinal," said Beaumont. "I'm going to stick with my commitment and get to know the new coach and then go from there."

Beaumont spoke to U of L assistant coach Greg Nord on Sunday and anticipates a follow-up call later this evening or Tuesday.

News of U of L's pending hire of Steve Kragthorpe of Tulsa as the program's 20th head coach continues to flow. A U of L personal meeting has been set for Tuesday at 4:00 p.m..

"I don't know much about him, but I heard that he's a pretty good coach and runs a good offense," Beaumont said of Kragthorpe.

The 5-foot-9, 180-pound all-purpose athlete was named Kentucky's Mr. Football following a senior season that saw him gain 1,169 rushing yards and 24 touchdowns, while also pulling in 39 receptions for 550 yards and 8 touchdowns. He also collected the Paul Hornung, Roy Kidd and the state's Gatorade Player of the Year awards

Also a standout on the hardwood, Beaumont was recently honored as the 5/3 Invitational Tournament MVP and has helped the Bulldogs race to an impressive 12-2 record.